“Knox County has picked its sheriff – Brent Gibson,” said former Knox Sheriff Tim Hutchison, who then moved to leave Knox County’s May 5 primary intact.

Hutchison’s motion passed – wisely and unanimously – when the TN Republican Primary Board met in Nashville and via Zoom on June 10, 2026.

Mike Davis had challenged the election, asking the primary board to vacate the vote for sheriff since two of the four candidates (Amburn and Jones) had indictments unsealed just days after the primary.

Attorney Lance Baker represented Davis. “Material information was withheld from the voters. The indictments were the wild card,” Baker said, noting that 56% of primary voters “picked someone else” other than Gibson.

Results from May 5 were:

  • Brent Gibson – 19,676 (44.14%)
  • David Amburn – 13,446 (30.16%)
  • Mike Davis – 6,330 (14.20%)
  • Jimmy “J.J.” Jones – 5,124 (11.50%)

Hutchison’s motion passed with very little debate, leaving one to wonder what Mike Davis was thinking.

Did Davis challenge the election without having lined up a single vote on the 66-member committee?

Does he now plan to sue the state primary board? If so, on what basis? Last night’s meeting was straightforward and transparent.

And has Mike’s challenge affected his wife’s reelection?

Mike Davis, former DEA agent, is married to state Rep. Elaine Davis, a Republican from District 18, which includes Cedar Bluff, Sequoyah Hills and a bit of South Knox County.

Elaine Davis has two opponents (Brent Jones and Elliott Schuchardt) in the upcoming August primary and another (Bryan Goldberg) in the November general election. All are highly motivated.

Brent Jones – Republican, is a UT graduate with a law degree from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University (2006). He served 11 years with the Air Force JAG Corps and the past seven years as a federal drug trafficking prosecutor. He had a campaign kickoff on June 3 with a host list with major GOP donors.

Elliott Schuchardt – Republican, is likewise a lawyer, albeit currently disbarred in Tennessee. He is also a published author and decided to run against Davis when he requested help and was ignored. He explains on his website HERE.

Bryan Goldberg – Democratic, is the general manager of Belfor Knoxville and previously served as president of the Knoxville Jewish Alliance. He lost to Davis in 2024, polling 46% of the vote. Goldberg sees a closer race this year without Donald Trump at the top of the ticket.

Note: With the elections so far out, some candidates don’t yet have an official website. For those, we used social media links.

Note 2: Come back tomorrow and we’ll talk Leaders and Outdoors.

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